Monday of 15th Week, Year II: reflection

Theme: The kind of prayer and offering acceptable to God

Reading: Is 1:10–17

Dear friends in Christ, our God cannot be bribed with gifts. God examines the hands with which gifts are offered to Him, and He rejects gifts offered to Him with hands soiled with blood, oppression, impurity, corruption and all forms of evil.

Some people believe they can hide their evil in the society by making large donations to churches or by marching towards the altar every Sunday with fat cows and other precious gifts. Sometimes, some people believe that by bringing costly sacrifices to God, despite their evil lifestyle, they will entice God to shower them with blessings. But God is saying in today’s first reading that such people are just wasting their time because their offerings and prayers are abominations before Him; He turns away from such prayers and offerings.

What, then, should we do to make our prayers or offerings acceptable to God? In today’s first reading, God says we should cleanse ourselves of our sins before appearing in His presence with our gifts and asking for favours; He says we should cease doing evil, and do good instead; then, in everything we do and everywhere we go, we should seek justice, correct oppression, defend the fatherless and plead the course of the widow. When we act in this manner, our prayers will be acceptable to God and our offerings will be received in His sanctuary like incense.

May your new week be bountifully blessed. Amen

St. Bonaventure, pray for us.

Fr Isaac Chima